Elisabeth Sladen

It's that time of year again, when everyone starts looking back over the past year and compiles 'Best of' and 'Worst of' lists. Twitter's been unveiling its annual 'Year in Review' since Thursday and has just published its 'Hot Topics' lists.

Uber-Twitter user Charlie Sheen's clearly still winning online: Last week AOLannounced that Sheen was our most searched-for celebrity in 2011, and now he's claimed the top spot in the Twitter "Actor" Hot Topic.

Plus, one of his stranger obsessions -- #tigerblood -- came in at Number 2 in the "Hashtags" category (just behind #egypt).

Elisabeth Sladen may not have been a household name in the U.S., but to generations of Brits who grew up watching 'Doctor Who' from behind the sofa each Saturday, she was a legend. Her untimely death from cancer earlier this year caught fans by surprise, and they were joined by 'Doctor Who' stars, writers and producers in mourning her passing.

Now it's been announced that Sladen's autobiography will be published posthumously. Publisher Aurum Press told the BBC that the original April release date has been brought forward to November 7, "with the support and participation of Elisabeth's family".

Former 'Doctor Who' star David Tennant has written a foreword to the "warm and witty" memoir, which covers Sladen's almost 40 years with the show as well as her "humble" beginnings in post-war Liverpool and her early stage and screen appearances.

There's been a lot of talk in the last week or two about women and science-fiction and fantasy.

Let's not rehash that debate here. Let's simply pay tribute to Elisabeth Sladen, who proved in four decades' worth of terrific work on 'Doctor Who,' that women and genre fare go together just fine.

Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago in the late '70s, I watched Sladen, the plucky companion on 'Doctor Who,' not just help defeat all manner of aliens but also hold her own with two different incarnations of the Doctor, feisty specimens played by Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. She played the sidekick role with such unquenchable energy and undeniable fizz that Russell T Davies, who revived 'Doctor Who' several years ago, created a new spinoff, 'The Sarah Jane Adventures,' just for her.

"I absolutely loved Lis," Davies said in a statement from BBC America. "She was funny and cheeky and clever and just simply wonderful. The universe was lucky to have Sarah Jane Smith; the world was lucky to have Lis."

Matt Smith has only just taken the reigns of the title role in 'Doctor Who' and he is already slated to make a guest-appearance on the spin-off series 'The Sarah Jane Adventures,' according to the BBC Press Office. For those unaware, the spin-off follows the adventures of former 'Doctor Who' companion Sarah Jane Smith as played by Elisabeth Sladen.

Also joining them in the same episode is former 'Doctor Who' companion Jo Grant. She'll be played by Katy Manning, who is stepping into the role for the first time since 1973.

And to round out the news trifecta, the episode will be written by the creator of 'The Sarah Jane Adventures' and the man responsible for bringing 'Doctor Who' back to television, Russell T. Davies. This would mark Davies' first time writing for the character of the Doctor since he left the series (and it could be argued that it's his first time writing for Smith's Doctor).

Mind you, Davies writing was never particularly impressive on the series in terms of science fiction. Davies' strength tends to be writing about relationships, and having the Doctor in a room with two of his ex-companions (which for the Doctor would be the equivalent of ex-girlfriends) is enough reason to tune in.

(S04E13) The latest season of Doctor Who gets resolved with a story that seems rushed, confusing and filled with self-love on the part of showrunner Russell T. Davies. But that doesn't necessarily mean it was bad.

To begin, the CGI and special effects are quite possibly the best ever seen on the show. Despite being in charge of the specials that will be airing next year, it seems that this episode was treated as the last that Davies will ever run. As a result, he wrapped up most every storyline he could think of going back to the first season.

In the No Duh News category, Sci Fi Channel has reported that they've acquired the fourth series (or season) of Doctor Who for air beginning in April. What's great additional news is that they've also picked up The Sarah Jane Adventures as well. The latter series focuses on Elisabeth Sladen's Sarah Jane, one of the most popular and famous "companions" in Who History, as she battles to keep Britain and the world save from alien encounters and invasions.

Sarah Jane is aided by a small group of children in her quest. And while the series has a lower budget than Who and is geared more towards a children's audience, I still found it to be tremendously fun. And any opportunity to see K-9 is worth it in my book!